Exclusion of Excellent Biosecurity Farms from Preventive Culling... Introduction of Disease Management Grading System

AI Outbreak Risk Assessment... Preventive Culling Scope Adjusted Every 2 Weeks if Necessary

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[Sejong=Asia Economy Reporter Moon Chaeseok] The Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs announced on the 14th that it will pilot a disease management grading system that gives poultry farms with good biosecurity conditions and thorough quarantine measures the option to be excluded from preventive culling targets amid highly pathogenic avian influenza (AI) outbreaks.

This year, the initiative will begin with layer farms that have large-scale operations and relatively good breeding and quarantine facilities but have experienced multiple AI outbreaks due to insufficient biosecurity management.

Farms wishing to participate can voluntarily apply to local governments, which will evaluate the farms based on the availability of facilities and equipment, the level of biosecurity management, and past AI outbreak history, classifying them into three types.

Type 'Ga' refers to farms equipped with quarantine facilities and equipment, meeting biosecurity management standards, and with no recent AI outbreak history; Type 'Na' refers to farms equipped with quarantine facilities and equipment, meeting biosecurity management standards but with recent AI outbreaks; Type 'Da' refers to farms lacking in quarantine facilities, equipment, or biosecurity management levels that require improvement. Farms classified as Type 'Ga' or 'Na' may be excluded from preventive culling.

Since Type 'Ga' farms have a high level of biosecurity, they are excluded from preventive culling to the greatest extent, while Type 'Na' farms are given the option to be excluded from preventive culling according to their biosecurity level.

Farms excluded from preventive culling will receive reduced culling compensation payments corresponding to the incentives provided in the event of an AI outbreak.

The Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs plans to announce the biosecurity standards and culling compensation payment criteria for each farm type under the disease management grading system starting from the 15th and will accept applications from layer farms.

Farms classified as Type 'Ga' or 'Na' can apply to local governments to select the scope of exclusion from preventive culling between October 1 and 5, with the results applied from October 9 through the end of March next year.

The ministry will analyze the results of this year’s pilot operation and consider expanding the system to other livestock species.

Additionally, starting this winter, the ministry will set the initial culling range based on AI risk assessments and conduct evaluations every two weeks to adjust the range as necessary.

The initial preventive culling range will, in principle, cover all livestock species within a 500-meter radius of the outbreak farm and the same species within a 3-kilometer radius, considering past outbreak cases.

Subsequently, risk assessments will be conducted biweekly using various indicators such as migratory bird distribution and detection patterns of wild birds and poultry farms, allowing for adjustments to the preventive culling range.

If adjustments are necessary, they will be finalized through the Central Livestock Quarantine Committee.

Park Byunghong, Deputy Minister of the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, said, "The newly introduced disease management grading system and AI risk assessment plan will mark a new turning point in biosecurity policy direction. We will continue to develop and implement detailed measures for AI biosecurity improvements announced on May 27, including restructuring the testing system and strengthening management of integrated operators, without any setbacks."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.